It’s Open to Interpretation:
Telling Porkies - Narrating and
Rewriting Life History and the
Use of Dramatic License

Lyon, Steve and Thurgood, Graham
(2007)
It’s Open to Interpretation:
Telling Porkies - Narrating and
Rewriting Life History and the
Use of Dramatic License.
In:
Narrative and Memory.
University of Huddersfield, Huddersfield, pp. 43-52.

Abstract

This paper provides some personal reflections on issues relating to how peopletell their life stories and interpret their past experiences, and how nurseteachers and researchers may interpret and use these narratives.This is a discussion of whether tales appearing on paper and told in theclassroom are ever truthful accounts and the extent to which they may bemanipulated for maximum effect considered. In a world fed on super graphicsand sound bites; what hope the subtle story teller. When ‘King Kong’ ispreferred over “Brokeback Mountain” the temptation to dramatise looms large.Examples of the use of dramatic license from both the narrators and researchersview point are provided. An exploration of why stories may be dramatised, andsome of the legal and ethical dilemmas that surface for anyone who isrepresenting the life stories of others either on paper or in the classroom arediscussed.There is discussion of whether it is ever justified to fabricate life stories inorder to best secure the ear of an audience and particularly in relation to whenthe life story is not ones own, but belongs to another. The purpose of‘stretching the truth’ is explored and its methodological implications for theresearcher considered.

Item Type:

Book Chapter

Additional Information:

Steve Lyon has held a number of posts in both education and clinical practice. He has a particular interest in the use of life story and its use in engaging with people using mental health services, provision of person centred care, and relapse prevention. Steve has helped introduce clinical supervision into two large mental health trusts, and reflects his interest in the use of narrative, reflective practice, and clinical supervision.
Graham worked in clinical nursing practice before moving to nurse education. He teaches on pre-registration undergraduate nursing courses and post-graduate management courses. He has conducted oral history interviews with retired nurses using a life story approach as part of an ongoing PhD study into the history of nursing in Halifax and Huddersfield .